AuthorTopic: Behringer DCX2496 (Read 4190 times)

I see these brought up more and more as a low-cost alternative to more expensive options like the DR260.

Are they considered acceptable in terms of noise, reliability and features for low-budget installs?

I hate to put my name on anything Behringer but with the X32 seeming to not have any more issues than any other manufacturer I wonder if the time isn't here or at least approaching that it may be considered acceptable to use some of their gear.

I have a low-budget church install coming up this week. I could find a used DRPA to get the job done but the DCX certainly has more bang for the buck IF it will be reliable and there aren't any noise issues.

Truck rolls cost money. In the non-audio industry I work in, I realized a long time ago that sometimes the most expensive option is using cheap gear that will have to be serviced over and over again.

I see these brought up more and more as a low-cost alternative to more expensive options like the DR260.

Are they considered acceptable in terms of noise, reliability and features for low-budget installs?

I hate to put my name on anything Behringer but with the X32 seeming to not have any more issues than any other manufacturer I wonder if the time isn't here or at least approaching that it may be considered acceptable to use some of their gear.

I have a low-budget church install coming up this week. I could find a used DRPA to get the job done but the DCX certainly has more bang for the buck IF it will be reliable and there aren't any noise issues.

Truck rolls cost money. In the non-audio industry I work in, I realized a long time ago that sometimes the most expensive option is using cheap gear that will have to be serviced over and over again.

Thanks in advance for any input.

Years ago I used to use quite a few of these in installs.

Most worked fine-but a couple developed the "frying bacon" sound, so we stopped using them.

Again-that was a number of years ago-I would hope the problem has been fixed now.

The feature set and performance was fine and did the job.

The problem is that with such a low price-there was almost no money to be made on selling it-so when they developed a problem, there was not any profit to help pay for the service call.

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A complex question is easily answered by a simple-easy to understand WRONG answer!

I see these brought up more and more as a low-cost alternative to more expensive options like the DR260.

Are they considered acceptable in terms of noise, reliability and features for low-budget installs?

I hate to put my name on anything Behringer but with the X32 seeming to not have any more issues than any other manufacturer I wonder if the time isn't here or at least approaching that it may be considered acceptable to use some of their gear.

I have a low-budget church install coming up this week. I could find a used DRPA to get the job done but the DCX certainly has more bang for the buck IF it will be reliable and there aren't any noise issues.

Truck rolls cost money. In the non-audio industry I work in, I realized a long time ago that sometimes the most expensive option is using cheap gear that will have to be serviced over and over again.

Thanks in advance for any input.

Personally a big fan of them, much more so than DRPA or DR260. Sounds much better than those in my opinion. If you're willing to spend $1k+ though you'll get a better processor without a doubt. I purchased 2 and kept one with all my settings as a spare in case it were to ever die...it never did though.

I have two DCX2496 which have been working fine for years. I replaced one with a BSS Omnidrive thinking it would sound better, but couldn't really tell the difference. The feature set, sound, usability and reliability are very close. If you are using the Behringer live, be careful as it stutters the audio if you make EQ changes on the fly. The BSS is much cleaner in that regard.

I bought one a few years back when I had to send our DR260 out for repair and needed something to fill a two week gap. It worked fine for that period. We kept the DCX2496 for use in our portable system and it has (surprisingly) worked just fine. It is the ONLY piece of Behringer gear that I have ever used that has lasted beyond the initial year.

We have long since replaced that DR260 in the main system, so the DCX2496 (portable system) actually outlasted the DBX product for us.

Of course, YMMV and no, I wouldn't recommend one for a permanent install that my name was on. I've been burned by too many other Behringer products over the years. However, last I checked, you could buy three or four of them for less than the cost of one DR260, so a customer could always keep a spare on-hand and still save money.

I bought one a few years back when I had to send our DR260 out for repair and needed something to fill a two week gap. It worked fine for that period. We kept the DCX2496 for use in our portable system and it has (surprisingly) worked just fine. It is the ONLY piece of Behringer gear that I have ever used that has lasted beyond the initial year.

We have long since replaced that DR260 in the main system, so the DCX2496 (portable system) actually outlasted the DBX product for us.

Of course, YMMV and no, I wouldn't recommend one for a permanent install that my name was on. I've been burned by too many other Behringer products over the years. However, last I checked, you could buy three or four of them for less than the cost of one DR260, so a customer could always keep a spare on-hand and still save money.

To be fair you could split all the inputs / outputs, run 2 of these redundantly so if one were to ever fail / not power on, you could just unmute the other one on and not skip a beat. Minimizing the single point of a failure and would be much more reliable than any other single unit by any other brand (just because of the redundancy

I've got about ten of these in stock. I use them for all sorts of things. For a long while, they were the crossover on my monitor wedges, then I started using them on my self powered PA on a sticks. Just to give a better crossover point than the QSC's. My only complaint is that the DSP isn't as high as a dvx drive rack, but your not paying drive rack prices. Get two thumbs up from me!

I see these brought up more and more as a low-cost alternative to more expensive options like the DR260.

Are they considered acceptable in terms of noise, reliability and features for low-budget installs?

I hate to put my name on anything Behringer but with the X32 seeming to not have any more issues than any other manufacturer I wonder if the time isn't here or at least approaching that it may be considered acceptable to use some of their gear.

I have a low-budget church install coming up this week. I could find a used DRPA to get the job done but the DCX certainly has more bang for the buck IF it will be reliable and there aren't any noise issues.

Truck rolls cost money. In the non-audio industry I work in, I realized a long time ago that sometimes the most expensive option is using cheap gear that will have to be serviced over and over again.

I've got about ten of these in stock. I use them for all sorts of things. For a long while, they were the crossover on my monitor wedges, then I started using them on my self powered PA on a sticks. Just to give a better crossover point than the QSC's. My only complaint is that the DSP isn't as high as a dvx drive rack, but your not paying drive rack prices. Get two thumbs up from me!

When install clients brought up Behringer products regarding an install I would tell them in no uncertain terms that they were an essentially unsupported, unfixable, disposable, and unwarranted item. They may work properly for an unknown(?) period: months to years, but service calls related to Behringer were not covered by any of our company service warranties. These clients were welcome to roll the Behringer dice, but all risk was on them, not us..

Behringer gates & comps went into some installs after this coaching, but never anything mission-critical. Things may have changed : look at Hyundai & Kia..., but for consoles & FOH speaker management? No.